Co-neighbouring is a design exploration that aims to examine the possibilities of resident’s engagement and collaboration in a rented apartment building in Sweden. In an apartment building for rent, where resident’s agency is limited to their private apartment, I invited my neighbors to become active designers of our closest environment together. This project uncovers the power relation visible between the landlord and tenants and some tensions that arise from this project’s will to give residents more agency. It also aims to highlight the importance of collaborative processes in apartment buildings and explores what kind of innovations become possible when residents get the chance to contribute to the development of the building they live in.
This small booklet is a summary of the process I went through and it shows a different perspective on urban development as well as examples of participatory processes that could be applied in residential spaces. It also argues how such participatory processes could be applied in cities and make them smarter.
NeighbourLab is a workers cooperative based in Canada that works with empowering residents and co-creating resilient neighborhoods. Their work includes physical infrastructure co-created by members of a community as well as resilience walks and workshops. They have supported me in my process by sharing different design approaches and methods they use when working with neighborhoods. Even though we live in different contexts, strengthening local connections became as relevant in Sweden as in Canada.
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